As we have covered before, the current firearms works known and loved by collectors, hipsters, and savvy users alike dates to 1936 when its new factory was established to produce machine guns for the Czech Air Force. However, it became iconic in the West for its CZ 75 double-stack 9mm pistol.
We were fortunate enough to hold CZ 75 Serial Number 00001 when we visited the CZ factory in 2024, the gun that made the company a household name on this side of the pond.
Now, the new Legend repeats the same slab-sided Iron Curtain aesthetic while keeping the pistol’s internals and features modern, including a 16+1 round magazine, making it essentially a “post-B” gun in a “pre-B” body.
The new CZ Legend. Note the slab-sided frame and slide as well as the pebble-style grips. (Photos: Chris Eger/Guns.com)
The new Legend compared to SN 00001, which we saw in 2024 in the Czech Republic.
MSRP on the new CZ 75 Legend will be $1,399.
Bundeswehr Pistole 13
One of the big stories from late last year was that the German military (Bundeswehr) had selected the CZ P-10 pistol after it beat out a number of contenders to become the country’s new P13 sidearm.
Among the finalists bested were the Arex Delta and Glock G17 Gen5 for what could be an order of as many as 180,000 units. It will replace the HK-made P8A1, a version of the USP
CZ had the new P13 on hand at their booth last week.
In another shift from previous German service handguns, the new striker-fired P13 will arrive wearing an FDE finish instead of the traditional black.
CZ will work directly with its authorized German partner, POL-TEC GmbH & Co., to fulfill the order and provide the Bundeswehr with support for the new platform.
CZ 457 Target
CZ 457 rifles are known for their superb accuracy, but the new 457 Target, a fully adjustable, ISSF 3-Position competition-ready aluminum chassis co-developed with four-time American Olympic shooter Matt Emmons, raises that bar.
It includes a three-axis-adjustable pistol grip available in three different sizes, a side-tiltable buttstock with a five-axis-adjustable buttpad, along with a three-axis-adjustable, two-sided cheekpiece; and a forehand riser can be adjusted in three different axes. A 26-inch 12-groove .22 cold hammer-forged match barrel equipped with a diffuser is standard as is an adjustable 2-stage Flyweight trigger.
The MSRP for the CZ 457 Target rifle is expected to be around $3,600, which is still less than many European-made alternatives in the same class from folks like Anschutz and Walther.
The Danish military has been heavy with updates on operations in the suddenly controversial territory of Greenland, and notably has done more in the past month to boost the defense of the massive land mass than it has in the past 80 years.
I would think everyone would agree that this is a good thing.
The Arktisk Kommando (Joint Arctic Command) has been steady with posts on social media in the past couple of weeks detailing visits by the patrol frigate HDMS Vaeddernen (F359), and her embarked MH60 to coastal towns and ship tours to locals (more than 3,000 calling aboard her at Nuuk Harbor alone, about one-sixth of the capital city’s population).
Guard details mounted at the temporary military area in Qinngorput outside of Nuuk– with soldiers practicing guarding critical infrastructure.
For the first time, Jægerkorpset arctic specialists (recently established) from metropolitan Denmark have been sent to Greenland’s roughest terrain at the Blosseville coast for operations.
There have even been visits and joint operations with small detachments of French (27e BIM) and German mountain troops (since withdrawn), brought in by two Danish C-130Js to Nuuk and Kangerlussuaq.
The exercise, Operation Arctic Endurance, also saw liaison personnel from Belgium, Britain, Finland, Iceland, the Netherlands, Norway, Slovenia, and Sweden– typically two officers from each.
In all, some 150 Danish troops from the Engineer Regiment and the Jutland Dragoon Regiment (Jydske Dragonregiment), and about 50 from NATO allies have been sent to Greenland for the Arctic Endurance mission, which is slated to run “a year or more.”
This bolsters the 90 regular personnel of the Arktisk Kommando, effectively tripling its size.
Keep in mind that when Germany invaded Denmark proper in April 1940, Greenland only had four police officers and two small (70-foot) sailing ships— the Royal Danish Navy’s opmålingsskib (survey ship) Ternen, and inspektionsskipMaagen, with 22 total crew– a sum of just 26 military and police to secure a land three times the size of Texas.
The French FREMM-class frigate Bretagne has been seen in the Greenlandic littoral and has been cross decking operations with her embarked Aeronaval EH101 helicopter.
Finally, two Danish F-35s from Fighter Wing Skrydstrup deployed directly to the area around Kulusuk on Greenland’s east coast with the aid of a French Air Force MRTT tanker.
The “long-hull” Essex-class fleet carrier USS Leyte (CV-32)is seen loading aircraft at Yokosuka, Japan, for transportation to the U.S. at the end of her Korean War combat tour. The photograph is dated 24 January 1951. Several decommissioned Tacoma-class frigates (PF), late of the Soviet Red Banner fleet, are moored in groups across the harbor background while a snow-capped Mount Fuji is just visible in the distance.
Official U.S. Navy Photograph, from the collections of the Naval History and Heritage Command. NH 97295
Commissioned 11 April 1946, Leyte (laid down as USS Crown Point) came too late for WWII but got her licks in off Korea from 9 October 1950 through 19 January 1951, where the ship and her airwing of Air Group Three spent 92 days at sea and flew 3,933 sorties against North Korean and Chinese forces.
Her pilots accumulated nearly 11,000 hours in the air while inflicting massive damage upon enemy positions, supplies, transportation, and communications.
Other outfits included another Corsair squadron, VF-33, a F9F-2 Panther unit (VF-31), an AD-3/4 Skyraider squadron (VA-35), and smaller dets from VC-4 (F4U-5N night fighters), VC-62 (F4U-5P photo birds), VC-12 (AD-4W), VC-33 (AD-3N), and a couple of well-used whirly birds from HU-2 who were famed for their C-SAR use.
USS Leyte (CV-32). Moored off Naval Operating Base, Yokosuka, Japan, during a break from Korean War operations, 1 December 1950. 80-G-424599
Never modernized from her 1946 arrangement, Leyte was reclassified as CVA-32 in October 1952 and as an anti-submarine carrier, CVS-32, the following August, operating in the Med and Caribbean for the rest of the decade.
Reclassified as a training carrier, AVT-10, in May 1959, she decommissioned the same day and was sold for scrap in 1970 after her parts were raided to keep her sisters in service; her usefulness to the Navy was at an end.
The U.S. Coast Guard is very active around the globe recently, featuring ships that would easily be considered floating museums in any other first or second world fleet, but, rather than having these old girls dockside for tours and ceremonies, the USCG is Sempering that Paratis, so to speak.
USCGC Polar Star (WAGB 10) escorts an Australian-owned cruise ship out of pack ice in the Ross Sea after the vessel requested assistance amid Operation Deep Freeze 2026, Jan. 17, 2026. Pacific Air Forces operates on a 24-hour basis to provide the U.S. National Science Foundation with complete joint operational and logistic support for Operation Deep Freeze. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Christopher Bokum) 260117-G-FN033-1008
The Australian-owned cruise ship Scenic Eclipse II contacted Polar Star at approximately 11 p.m., local time, Friday, after becoming beset in pack ice roughly eight nautical miles from McMurdo Sound. Polar Star’s crew conducted two close passes to break the vessel free, then escorted it approximately four nautical miles to open water.
“At 50 years old, Polar Star remains the world’s most capable non-nuclear icebreaker,” said Cmdr. Samuel Blase, Polar Star’s executive officer. “That’s a testament to the crews that have maintained it over the decades. With years of service left to give, Polar Star will continue to guide the way in the high latitudes well into the future.”
USCGC Polar Star (WAGB 10) crew members pose for a group photo while the cutter sits hove-to in the Ross Sea during Operation Deep Freeze 2026, Jan. 12, 2026. The cutter turns 50 years old on Jan. 17, 2026, amid Operation Deep Freeze, which is a joint service, inter-agency support operation for the National Science Foundation that manages the United States Antarctic Program. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Christopher Bokum) 260112-G-FN033-4120
Commissioned 17 January 1976, Polar Star remains in service with a combination of parts salvaged from her late sister, Polar Sea, out of service since 2010, but still afloat in mothball status in Suisun Bay, and yearly lengthy yard periods (she just finished a 175-day SLEP at Mare Island Dry Dock last summer, a yard which sadly closed on Dec. 31 2025).
She won’t be retired until a new heavy icebreaker arrives in USCG red as part of the Polar Security Cutter program in 2030 (maybe).
She is on her 29th deployment to Antarctica in support of Operation Deep Freeze, leaving her Seattle homeport in November, and is slated to return home later this year.
Vigilant
The 210-foot Reliance-class medium endurance cutter USCGC Vigilant (WMEC 617) returned to her Cape Canaveral homeport last Friday after a 33-day patrol in the Caribbean Sea supporting Operations Pacific Viper (including transits through the Panama Canal) and Southern Spear.
Notably, she returned to the U.S. with an impounded “Shadow Fleet” tanker, with the assistance of a Navy MH-60S from the “Tridents” of HSC-9.
During the patrol, Vigilant escorted a motor tanker, which was seized by a U.S. Coast Guard tactical boarding team with support from the Department of War, for operating as a vessel without nationality in the Caribbean Sea. Vigilant’s crew coordinated with naval and law enforcement partners to transfer personnel and provisions to the tanker. A law enforcement team from Vigilant boarded the vessel to provide security during the 600-nautical-mile transit to the United States.
U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Vigilant (WMEC 617), right, sails in the Western Atlantic Ocean while escorting a motor tanker after a right of visit boarding, Jan. 7, 2026. Vigilant escorted the motor tanker, which was seized by a Coast Guard tactical boarding team with support from the Department of War, for operating as a vessel without nationality in the Caribbean Sea. (U.S. Navy Photo)
U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Vigilant’s (WMEC 617) small boat crew comes alongside a motor tanker in the Atlantic Ocean, Jan. 7, 2026. Vigilant escorted the motor tanker, which was seized by a Coast Guard tactical boarding team with support from the Department of War, for operating as a vessel without nationality in the Caribbean Sea. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Brandon Feehery) 260107-G-G0100-1001
U.S. Coast Guard crewmembers transfer from the Coast Guard Cutter Vigilant (WMEC 617) to a motor tanker by a helicopter crew assigned to U.S. Navy Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 9 in the Atlantic Ocean, Jan. 7, 2026. Vigilant escorted the tanker, which was seized by a joint Coast Guard and Department of War team for conducting illicit activities in the Caribbean Sea. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Brandon Feehery) 260107-G-G0100-1003
Valiant was commissioned in 1964 (not a misprint) and had her mid-life refit in 1989-90– some 36 years ago at this point.
Talk about golden years.
Hickory
The USCGC Hickory (WLB 212), a 225-foot Juniper-class seagoing buoy tender, arrived at her new homeport in Guam on 14 January, following a more than 13,000-mile transit over 71 days from the U.S. Coast Guard Yard in Baltimore via the Panama Canal.
The USCGC Hickory (WLB 212), a 225-foot Juniper-class seagoing buoy tender, arrives in Apra Harbor as it comes to their new homeport in Guam on Jan. 14, 2026, following a more than 13,000-mile transit over 71 days from the U.S. Coast Guard Yard in Baltimore through the Panama Canal. After an extended Major Maintenance Availability at the Yard, part of the In-Service Vessel Sustainment Program that modernizes the entire Juniper-class fleet with hull repairs, system upgrades, and replacement of obsolete equipment, the Hickory is now fully revitalized. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Chief Warrant Officer Muir)
Hickory, commissioned in 2003, spent the first half of her career as “The Kenai Keeper” and “Bull of the North” while stationed in Alaska and has recently capped an extensive and lengthy modernization at the Coast Guard Yard in Baltimore that will steel her for the next 20 years.
Hickory is the most forward-deployed Juniper in the Pacific, joining sisters USCGC Juniper (WLB 201) and Hollyhock (WLB 214), both homeported in Honolulu. In addition to tending hundreds of aids to navigation, WLBs in the region regularly complete 40-50-day Operation Blue Pacific patrols of Oceana with Allied ship riders aboard, important hearts-and-minds stuff.
If things go squirrely, say with non-nation actors, pirates, or other rogues in those areas that a small group of pipe hitters could fix and naval assets are not available, some may see NG SF ODAs or the Coast Guard’s own MSST units carried from buoy tenders as a low-tech option. They have room for an Mk 38 (which isn’t installed) and carry a few .50 cals and small arms as well.
The USCGC Hickory (WLB 212), a 225-foot Juniper-class seagoing buoy tender, arrives in Apra Harbor as it comes to their new homeport in Guam on Jan. 14, 2026, following a more than 13,000-mile transit over 71 days from the U.S. Coast Guard Yard in Baltimore through the Panama Canal. After an extended Major Maintenance Availability at the Yard, part of the In-Service Vessel Sustainment Program that modernizes the entire Juniper-class fleet with hull repairs, system upgrades, and replacement of obsolete equipment, the Hickory is now fully revitalized. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Chief Warrant Officer Muir)
The mighty 21,000-ton dreadnought, USS Florida (Battleship No. 30), gives Naval Academy Midshipmen a taste of salt water on their annual cruise during the early 1920s. She is followed by USS Delaware (BB-28) and USS North Dakota (BB-29).
NARA photo 19-N-12607. National Archives Identifier 496081005
According to DANFS, Florida was familiar to the Mids, having often carried them as part of the Practice Squadron to sea during her career. This included a tour of European ports of call, including Copenhagen, Denmark; Greenock, Scotland; Lisbon, Portugal; and Gibraltar in 1923; as well as regular summer cruises in both 1912 and 1913 then 1927 through 1930, ranging from Nova Scotia to the Panama Canal. She also conducted coastal cruises for Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps (NROTC) students from Harvard, Yale, and Georgia Tech.
Her summer trip to Europe, her decks teeming with Mids, would be her last.
USS Florida (BB-30) at Kiel, Germany, 7 July 1930, during a Midshipman’s training cruise. Official U.S. Navy Photograph, now in the collections of the National Archives. 80-G-1025114
Decommissioned at the Philadelphia Navy Yard on 16 February 1931, Florida was authorized on 1 April to be placed on the list of Navy vessels to be disposed of by salvage in accordance with the London Naval Treaty of 1930. Consequently, Florida was stricken from the Navy Register on 6 April 1931, and her final scrapping, including all shipments of materials sold or reserved, was completed on 30 September 1932.
I’ll fight to the death that the pinnacle of Browning Hi-Power production was the C-series guns made for the post-war commercial market between 1969 to 75.
Ditching the “thumbprint” slide and tangent sights while using an external extractor, ring hammer, and finely checkered wood (not plastic grips) on a finely fit pistol with a polished blue finish, the C-series is BHP royalty.
In my opinion, everything that came after was money saving move that cheapened the end product.
Oh, baby.
When the Springfield Armory SA-35 came out four years ago, we were among the first to break the story and loved the gun, despite its hiccups. However, I just wish it came with a better finish.
Now that is a pretty gun, and Springfield says it is made in America. (Photo: Chris Eger/Guns.com)
Well, I came across the new SA-35 at SHOT this week and am in love. Best yet, the price is in the $700s.
Official period caption: “Egyptian sub-chaser anchored in Grand Harbor, Valetta, Malta. 24 January 1951.”
Photographed by U.S. Navy PH2 W.S. McGill, 80-G-426951
I’m fairly sure that the warship above, with very British lines, is the Egyptian Navy frigate El Malek al Farouq (Farouk). A former Yarrow-built Black Swan-class sloop,HMS Whimbrel (U 29), she entered service in January 1943, making her just eight years old in the above photo.
She replaced a Hawthorne-built sloop of the same name, which was sunk in a scrap with the Israelis in 1948. As such, she was the best ship in the Egyptian fleet until a pair of ex-British Z-class destroyers (HMS Myngs and Zenith) were transferred in 1955.
Transferred in November 1949 to the nascent Egyptian force, she was named after Farouk I, the King of Egypt and the Sudan from 1936 through 1952, including the period during which she was captured above.
After King Farouk was overthrown in a military coup, the sloop/frigate was renamed a third time to Tariq (Tarik) in 1954.
Tariq, ex-Farouk, ex-Whimbrel, in the 1960 Janes.
Where the ship really stands out is, as Whimbrel, rode on more than two dozen Atlantic convoys and picked up battle honors for Sicily, 1943; Atlantic, 1943–44; Normandy, 1944; English Channel, 1944; Arctic, 1944; and Okinawa, 1945, and has been reported as the only member remaining of the 16 Royal Navy warships to have been present at the Surrender of Japan on VJ Day in Tokyo Bay.
Wait, what?
Yeah, the Egyptians apparently kept Tariq in somewhat limited service as a pier-side trainer until at least 2016 and held on to her for a while after that.
Assorted museums in the UK have shown an interest in housing ex-Whimbrel and as a museum ship, but I am not sure that is still a thing.
Never underestimate the ability of a moto mural. Nice to see they are still popping up around the fleet.
Bulkheads: a Sailor’s canvas!
Showcasing the mural art of Quartermaster 2nd Class Carson Betancourt, from Jenks, Oklahoma, assigned to the 25,000-ton Pascagoula-built San Antonio-class amphibious transport dock ship, USS San Diego (LPD 22). Included is one telling the epic tale of Chief Boatswain’s Mate George “Sandy” Sanderson, complete with his 11 gold hashmarks.
BZ QM2 Betancourt!
(U.S. Navy Photos by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Sade’ Anita Wallace).
I really dig AKs in 5.56, and they are seeing a lot more love these days, especially as 5.45 is growing harder and harder to get in quantity for cheap. I’ve been chasing this dream for well over a decade, going back to my original Century-imported Zastava-made, Krinkov-style M85NP pistol picked up in 2014 (serial number 81!), and even longer if you consider the Galil an AK.
My circa 2014 M85NP that accepts AR mags. It was long ago SBR’d– back when there was a tax for that. (Photos unless noted: Chris Eger/Guns.com)
While Century and Zastava long ago broke up, and the latter is running their own operations stateside now (albeit with on-again/off-again export issues) since 2019, the M85 is still around but without the option to run AR mags– which is what I love about my old M85 NP.
So why not run the new ZPAP M85– which has been extensively updated– for a bit and show how it stacks up.
My old M85NP SBR rifle from 2014 (top) with a more current ZPAP M85 pistol (bottom), the latter outfitted with a Midwest Industries M1913 brace and Vortex Crossfire dot.
Both are nice builds, as they have the same DNA, but I think I’m feeling the newer gun more.
For those interested in just running an M85 16-inch carbine in 5.56, Zastava makes those as well. (Photos: Zastava)
For full disclosure, Zastava provided this ZPAP M85 pistol for review purposes. All testing was done on this one gun, which has been under evaluation since December.
The Specs
Overall length (no brace): 19.3 inches Barrel length: 10.5-inch cold radial hammer forged, chrome lined threaded (26×1.5mm LH) Width: 2 inches across the forearm at the thickest, 1.5 across the receiver at the trunnion Height without magazine: 7.5 inches (no optics) Height with magazine inserted: 10.56 inches (no optics) Magazine capacity: 30 rounds 5.56 NATO; ships with one plastic Z-Mag Sights: Twin dual-aperture metal sights, 3.9-inch M1913 Picatinny top rail installed Sight radius: 13.5 inches Trigger pull: 6 pounds (10-pull average). Weight: 6.6 pounds, unloaded, sans optics Weight outfitted: 10.1 pounds with 30 rounds of 62-grain FMJ in loaded magazine, Vortex Crossfire red dot on a tall 1/3rd mount, Midwest Industries folding M1913 stabilizing brace, and Crimson Trace CMR-301 Rail Master Pro light/green laser.
Features
The basic ZPAP M85 we had in for testing is SKU ZP85556FDE (UPC: 685757098892), which is still a 5.56x45mm/.223 caliber semi-automatic pistol with a 10.5-inch cold hammer forged chrome-lined barrel.
As you may note, it is FDE Cerakote with a black quad forearm, safety lever, 1913 sections, angled foregrip, and muzzle device. The pistol grip is black plastic.
The dimpled receiver is 1.5mm stamped steel with a bulged RPK-style trunnion. Overbuilt, it’s as thick as an old shovel, and just as hard. tion here
Both M85s, old and new, use a hinged top cover, which is a snap for maintenance. The bolt carrier is hard nickel-moly (molybdenum) steel.
Our review model sports Zastava’s M85/92 M1913 Quad Rail in T6 6061 aluminum, which is anodized and has a matte black finish. It is 6 inches long, includes a removable UTG angled foregrip at the 6 o’clock position, and is great for cheese grating. Zastava sells these separatelyfor folks looking to upgrade their Yugo AK pistols.
The 3-inch-long removable Night Brake muzzle device weighs five ounces by itself and has a large, slanted port at the rear and a 3-prong design to help break up the flash as seen by the user. In practice, everyone else sees a ton of flash off this gun, no matter the time of day.
My other M85 has the more commonly seen Krinkov-style booster. The Night Brake is much more aggressive, in all senses of that word.
That oddball 26×1.5mm LH pitch is a bummer when it comes to utilizing suppressors if you don’t want to run a Zastava Vuk or Dead Air Wolverine, as it leaves you searching for something like a JMAC muzzle device (which are $100 ish) or some sort of funky thread converter that adds length and a bunch of tolerance stacking. It’s not impossible to run a can, just a bit of a pain.
The safety lever has a bolt hold-open notch. Speaking of holding that bolt, the Z-Mag sent with the M85 also holds open after the last round, something we did not experience on other mags.
It uses a Krinkov-style rear sight with two different apertures.
The front post sight is adjustable and also includes a flip-up aperture.
The 3-inch Pic rail atop the receiver cover is solid, and we mounted a Vortex Crossfire 2 MOA dot in FDE. Good for 50,000 hours on a single CR2032, it is only 2.5 inches long while offering 11 brightness settings (two night, nine day). Gas purged and O-ring sealed for fog-proof and waterproof performance in all conditions, the Crossfire is a tough little dot. We ran the higher mount, which enabled us to also use the irons in a pinch and see the dot via Nods.
Useable right out of the box (just add lube and bullets), the base M85 makes a good “ride along” that is very stowable for use around camp or in the field.
We decided to stretch the platform a bit with an FDE Midwest Industries M1913 side-folding stabilizing brace. Made from hard-coat anodized 6061 aluminum, it adds 9 inches to the length of the M85 when deployed (making the pistol some 31 inches long) and only 0.75 inches when folded. Weight is 14 ounces, so it adds some heft for sure, but makes the 5.56 pistol a lot easier to shoot at distance, and adds 5 QD sling attachments to the rear of the gun.
The ZPAP M85 with folded Midwest brace (not a stock) compared to the MP85NP SBR with a U.S. Machine Gun side-folding Galil style stock.
Even with the brace installed, the pistol easily fits inside a milsurp ($20) M60 spare barrel bag. Our old M85 (top) fits in a Russian paratrooper drop bag, but with the optic on our new one, we couldn’t make it work.
We also added an aluminum-bodied Crimson Trace CMR-301 Rail Master Pro light/green laser and switch to the rail, trying to fill the space.
The chunky CMR-301 just seemed to match the ZPAP’s concrete brutalist aesthetic.
Plus, with the option to run a 500 or 1,000-lumen light or green laser, or both, it provides hours of enjoyment for your cat.
Perhaps the strongest thing you can say is that the gun has a total Slav energy about it. At least if you die with a ZPAP M85, you went out looking cool.
Trigger
The double-hook Yugo-style trigger generally breaks at about 6.5 pounds, which isn’t terrible for an AK factory trigger.
Reliability
We ran the M85 on a ton of 5.56 rounds that we had around, pulling from over a dozen different loads. This leaned more toward bulk pack surplus ammo, primarily German 55-grain MEN loads. We only suffered two issues over the course of 1,000 rounds, one a misfire with a dimpled primer on some LC-stamped Winchester green tip, the other a FTE while running a box of old Tula green case.
Very short 10-inch 5.56 PDWs lose a lot of ballistic umpf, but with the right ammo choices, that can be mitigated. Rounds that are SBR-optimized and designed to tumble and expand at lower speeds, such as Barnes’ 70-grain TSX copper solids, Hornady’s Black-series 75-grain Interlock HD SBR, 77-grain Black Hills Mk262, et al., are widely available, though a bit expensive. Greentip ball is cheap and plentiful and is going to shoot through it, but if using the M85 in a “people with guns” gone wrong situation, it’s probably going to be good to have a few mags of really nice SBR-friendly self-defense rounds on tap.
The polymer ZPAP 30 magazine runs $25 and has a BHO (bolt hold open) and follower that are steel reinforced and run $25ish, while the ZPAP 5.56 steel mag, which gives strong Galil vibes, runs about $40.
On aftermarket rock-and-lock non-Zastava mags, we had an AC Unity 45 rounder that would not seat, but an AK19 style Gen 3 AC Unity 30 would and ran just fine. We also tried two $12 Bulgarian AK74-style fakelites and one worked while the other one didn’t, so that’s a 50/50 option in our experience.
The biggest problem we had was the fact that the gun was super stiff, with the magazine release in particular needing lots of actuation to smooth out.
Zastava-imported DRNCH lubricant was our friend during the T&E period. Direct from Belgrade.
Accuracy
The M85 is not a tack driver. I mean, you have a choice of a short sight radius and kinda funky irons when using fixed sights, or a dot mounted on a hinged top receiver cover. Add to this a 10.5 barrel, and you do not have a recipe for sub-MOA shooting. Still, the gun was very usable and able to achieve and maintain a 2–3-inch group at 50 yards while shooting off a barricade and utilizing the Midwest brace, roughly doubling that group at 100. When shooting offhand, standing, 25-yard A-zone groups are still overly simple, especially when using a dot. That is fun all day on a short range, with an obvious dual application in harvesting medium-sized game or controlling nuisance critters in brush, or in a close-in self-defense scenario.
Adding an LPVO and running it off a benchrest with match ammo could shrink that group, but why? Doing so misses the point of this one, Brate.
Pros & Cons
Pros
Overbuilt
Reliable
Chrome-lined barrel
Quad rail
Accurate for practical use
Lots of factory options
Magazines are available
Cons
Suppressor mounting is complicated due to the thread pattern
Furniture options are limited
Heavy at 6.3 pounds unloaded and over 10 outfitted.
Conclusion
I love my original M85 NP that I’ve had for over a decade, and the newest batch of M85 pistols continues that love affair. It’s a solid (and I do mean solid, at 6.3 pounds right out of the box) entry into the 5.56 AK pistol market. The old NP allowed use with an AR mag, but the newer models, sans magwell adapter, run the more traditional rock-and-lock setup, and AK556 mags are becoming better and more available than they were 10 years ago.
Whether you Form 1 it into an SBR or just roll with a brace and keep it in the pistol zone, the M85 has lots of options and provides joy.
Compared to Romanian-made Dracos, M85s have a lot of “ups,” including a barrel that is more likely to be concentric (important for use with cans and muzzle devices), a better fit and finish, and a lot of potential factory add-ons such as a quad rail, rear M1913 rail, and the giant Night Brake as shown. The other AK556 pistol on the market is the Polish WBP Rogow Mini Jack, which often doesn’t have a brace attachment on the rear but does allow users to add an under-folder AKSU-style stock to their SBR build and, like the Dracos, accepts AK furniture.
You are a bit more limited on furniture options on the M85, as pretty much just Zastava’s M92 pattern stuff interchanges. Even with their other guns, M70 (7.62×39), M77 (.308), and M90 (5.56) handguards and stocks interchange among themselves, but none will fit the M85. Nonetheless, there are some aftermarket options out there for the gun, and it can even accept an ALG AKT trigger (although with the use of an AK body, pin mods, and roll pin safety). Plus, Midwest Industries is marketing M-LOK drop-in handguards for the M85, so there is hope.
In the end, the Zastava ZPAP M85 line just seems to keep getting better. It’s an all-around “NATO AK” package that is getting lots of attention for all the right reasons.
A cluster of Great War-era Wickes (Lumberton) class four-piper flush deck destroyers seen out of commission, in mothballs at San Diego, 4 April 1939. The converted fast minelayers USS Montgomery (DM-17) and USS Gamble (DM-15) are present in the foreground, although they still wear their original greyhound hull numbers (DD-121 and DD-123, respectively), but are ornamented with the Mine Force “meatball” insignia on the bow.
Those masts are close enough that Tarzan could swing from one to the other and never touch the deck!
Reactivated to join Mine Division Two in time for Pearl Harbor,Montgomery would be irreparably damaged by a mine in Ngulu Lagoon, Caroline Islands, 17 October 1944, with the death of four of her crew, knocking her out of the war. She was stricken and sold for scrap in 1946.
Likewise, Gamble was also knocked out by Japanese bombs in February 1945 while off Iwo Jima and never repaired.
Between just these two unsung “tin cans,” they earned 11 battle stars in the Pacific, the only way that small boys can: the hard way.
